Rector’s Letter

Dear Friends,
Food is fuel! To revert from an analogy with driving a car back to cycling, food converts into pedal-power. On a long bike ride, you are in tune with how your body is feeling. Besides fatigue in the legs and aches in the back, you know when you are running out of energy. After two hours of the final leg, I knew the energy from breakfast had been used up, and it was time for a … [Read more...]

Dear Friends,
A huge thank you to all those who have taken an active interest in our long bike ride from Land’s End to John O’Groats. Steve and I have greatly valued your support. Your prayers and the sponsorship kept us going when fatigue slowed our tired legs, especially on the long hills. We are hugely grateful. You can come to hear all about our adventures at a celebratory event in the … [Read more...]

Dear Friends,
I’m dreaming of cycling down into John O’Groats at the end of the LEJOG. I imagine the sense of achievement, and the shared elation of completing the journey. Besides being pleased to have got there in one piece and not too exhausted, there might even be a wistfulness that it is over. I might also feel pretty tired. My legs will be weary, and there could be considerable relief … [Read more...]

Dear Friends,
Preparation for the LEJOG is in full swing.
Long bike rides, allied to a rigorous diet, are getting me into ideal shape for the 1041 miles from Land’s End to John O’Groats. Steve Hasler and I have practiced cycling one directly behind the other, in order to conserve our energy for the arduous challenge of over 60 miles each day for almost two weeks. We feel increasingly ready … [Read more...]

March 2016
The Rector writes:
Dear Friends,
Whilst W.B. Yeats’ poem The Second Coming, written in the aftermath of the First World War, seems to have almost constant relevance, I find that it resonates more strongly now than at any other stage of my life. His gloomy view, against the backdrop of the turmoil and destruction engulfing so much of our planet, seems spot-on. Sadly, I think … [Read more...]

February 2016
The Rector writes:
Dear Friends,
If you were there, cast your mind back to the wonderful Christmas Carol Service in December in the parish church. Amongst the carols and beautiful choral pieces, the Junior Choir, sang Graham Kendrick’s beautiful song “Thorns in the straw”. The title, along with the lyrics, holds together the birth and the death of Jesus. ‘Straw’ reminds us of … [Read more...]

December 2015/January 2016
The Rector writes:
Dear Friends,
Now after the wise men had left, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream and said, ‘Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt, and remain there until I tell you; for Herod is about to search for the child, to destroy him.’ Then Joseph got up, took the child and his mother by night, and went to Egypt, and … [Read more...]

November 2015
The Rector writes:
Dear Friends,
6th October is a significant date for me. It is the date of my mother’s death and my dad’s birthday. Powerful memories of her final hours in a hospice in Kent are stirred each year. I picture the scene: as I said the prayers of commendation, my dad’s face crumpled and my sister stroked her brow.
My mum died on my dad’s 65th birthday, a … [Read more...]

THURSDAY PRAISE – an evening of worship, teaching and getting to know each other better in St Mary’s Parish Rooms. Refreshments will be on offer from 7.45pm and we’ll start at 8pm. All welcome. David.[...]